Labor Updates (1/31/08)

Thousands Tell the King to Stop Penny-Pinching: Demanding Burger King end exploitation of farmworkers and pay workers a penny more per pound for the tomatoes they pick, labor activists and workers recently delivered petitions with 28,000 signatures to Burger King CEO John Chidsay, reports the Coalition of Immokalee Workers website. The farmworker campaign (Caroling for Farmworker Justice 12/20/07 UC) – which has received support from labor activists in DC and across the country – has faced strong opposition from Burger King after winning agreements with McDonald’s and Yum! Brands – owner of Taco Bell and other national food chains – to improve wages and working conditions. “Not only is Burger King refusing to work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers [who represents the workers] to improve labor standards, it’s also trying to undermine the agreements already in place with other fast food chains,” says American Rights at Work.